Year: 2008

Hello friends of Bio Bio Expeditions!Damara here – just wanting to
share some information with you about the threats facing the mighty
rivers of Patagonia (including our beloved Futaleufu). If you traveled
to the Futa with us last winter you may remember the environmental
letter I encouraged everyone to sign? Well, at the end of the season, I
sent off more than 60 letters to the President of Chile – Michelle
Bachelet. Two months later I received a formal response from the
President’s Cabinet thanking me (and all of you) for our concern and
assuring me that our concerns would be considered and sent through the
proper channels. Later in the summer I received another letter from the
President’s cabinet (see photo) also reassuring me that any hydro or
mining projects on the Futaleufu would go under rigorous study first and
that our comments would be considered. Both were very formal letters,
no promises, but I was quite pleased and impressed to have received a
response. So, thank you to all who helped me and signed a letter!!!
In other news, here are two websites you can click on to do your part
to save the beautiful, mighty rivers and forests of Patagonia. Both
the Pascua and Baker rivers, south of Futaleufu, are very threatened
right now. The power transmission lines they would have to build to
transport power from these massive dams would involve clearcutting a 400
foot wide swath (football field size) through pristine forest for
thousands of miles. You can read more about it, and send comments just
with the click of a mouse, at the following websites:

If
you loved it down there as much as we do, please take a moment to read
about the issues and take action! If you haven’t yet traveled to
Patagonia, now’s the time! Lets show the Chilean government that
tourism and adventure travel is a better alternative for Patagonia than
destructive mines and dams. Thanks everyone and hope you have a very
Happy Thanksgiving!Love, Damara

I got a call this morning at 5 AM from Edgar who
called from Nelli’s house to tell me that yesterday at 4 pm Don Rolando
passed away in the hospital in Puerto Montt. Ximena was with him. May he
rest in peace.

He was a great man, always quick to make a joke,
see the humour in life and always always ready to help anybody who
needed anything at all. He built he Bio Bio Camp on the Fu and tended to
it like it was his own. He will be missed and is survived by his sister
Nelli who is of course very sad, distraught and in need of as much
comfort as we can send her.There is so much more that I could say
and there is lots more that I feel. We are all sad, eventhough we are
happy he is no longer suffering as the last few months of his life his
quality of life had severely taken a turn for the worse. He lost lots of
weight, was incoherent and in the end was also in pain. We may be
thankful that there is rest in death and mercy in passing on. He will
forever live on in our minds, and his work we will enjoy well into the
future. Our energy and thoughts should go out to Nelli and Ximena, who
no longer have a man around the house.

Their number should you choose to call them: (011) 562-1964259or mail cards:

We are so thankful for all the outpouring of
support during the Volcan Chaiten eruption and just as thankful that our
camp and the Futaleufu have been spared! The financial contributions
that we have collected will still make life easier for the locals as
many sold off cattle and sheep to get them out of the area. The money
will also help them deal with fuel shortages and triple price hikes. We
are also studying a way to get the rio Azul residents a web page to
help visitors to the areas enlist their services in the future. Tourists
can then book such things as a home cooked Asado, a home stay, a hike
to hidden lakes, or horse rides etc. This will be a way to get passerby
visitors in touch with the Futaleufu locals and will allow them to make
money well into the future as soon as we all get the word out that the
Futaleufu is every bit as beautiful as ever! It is true that the heavy
winter rains have taken care of the ash fall. In many places the soil
has been actually enriched and this will help grow even healthier
vegetation.

The worst possible outcome for the locals now is
that visitors stay away due to sensationalist press, which would make
carving a living out of the wilderness even harder. They really are
working hard to provide services to the growing number of tourists and
this is for many the largest source of income. So, tell your friends how
great the Futaleufu is and that they should visit soon as much as ever
before!!

National Geographic Adventurer – When we started this annual roundup of
the world’s top guided tours three years ago, we sought to bring readers
the most transformative, sustainable, and authentic experiences. To our
delight, there’s no shortage of companies that share our philosophy.
Whether it’s staring down a king penguin in Antarctica, sharing mole
with a Oaxacan family, or watching your kids in a pickup soccer game in
Sardinia, this is the sort of travel that will stick with you. We hope
our 2008 picks get you inspired.

Bio Bio Expeditions Futaleufu trip in Patagonia picked as one of the 50 best trips – May 2008